1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and a method and program embodied in a computer readable recording medium for configuring print settings. More particularly, the present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, method and program embodied in a computer readable recording medium capable of configuring print settings which have less influence on the environment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, the environmental protection movements have been promoted and, as part of such movements in the industrial field, there has been a need for the effective use of resources such as paper and toner consumed in image forming apparatuses. Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. H10-31400 discloses a method for managing image formation, wherein the number of times of copying is restricted to not exceed an upper limit preset for each department to which the user of the copier belongs to. By restricting the times of copying, the consumption of resources is maintained within the upper limit.
There is a case, however, where the necessary number of documents may not be prepared because the number of times of copying is restricted. Therefore, it is desired to minimize the environmental influence without restricting the times of copying. On the other hand, the recycling system of paper resource seems to have been almost established, but recycling the paper may also affect the environment. Therefore, in addition to minimize the environmental influence caused by consuming the resources such as paper and toner, it is also desired to minimize the environmental influence attributable to recycling the paper with images formed thereon.